CHESTER’S three-game Blue Square Premier winning run came to an end tonight at the hands of the play-off pushing Minstermen – despite a spirited second-half fightback.

Jim Harvey’s basement boys were ultimately undone by Richard Brodie’s superb hat-trick as they tasted their first defeat on the road since August.

The Blues made the trip north hoping to extend their unbeaten away record to 10 matches and so avoid becoming the second Cheshire side to taste defeat at KitKat Crescent in three days – but those hopes were effectively dashed in the very first minute.

There was just 35 seconds on the clock when Brodie picked up possession just inside Chester’s half and danced his way through their sleeping defence before slotting a low left-footed shot past John Danby. It was a classy finish from the division’s joint top-goalscorer, although he was helped by Blues captain Tim Ryan’s slip at the crucial moment.

York, buzzing after their FA Cup victory over Crewe Alexandra on Saturday, should have doubled their advantage moments later only for the unmarked Mark Rankine to head Ben Purkiss’ cross wide when it looked easier to score.

The hosts were playing exactly like a team who have not lost at home since April and Brodie and Alex Lawless flashed strikes just past the post.

It took 20 minutes for the visitors to truly get a foothold in the game and only a timely intervention by skipper Daniel Parslow prevented Mark Beesley from putting a finishing touch to a neat one-two with Nick Chadwick.

That let-off spurred the Minstermen on and after Danby made two fine saves to deny Adam Smith, Brodie doubled his tally in the 32nd minute by slotting in a penalty he won after Neil Ashton was harshly adjudged to have up-ended the hotshot in the box.

The visitors, with Anthony Barry on as 28th-minute replacement for James Owen, needed a lifeline and they so nearly got one a minute before the break when the fit-again Shaun Kelly rose highest to meet Clark Keltie’s corner and saw his header cleared off the line.

Despite that chance, the interval could not come fast enough for Blues boss Harvey. His half-time instructions went out of the window, though, just two minutes after the restart as the highly-impressive Brodie latched on to Neil Barrett’s through pass and was given the time and space to clip a left-footed effort past Danby to complete his treble.

It now seemed a case of how many York would get – but then Chester scored.

Midfielder Barry had already gone close with a long-range daisy-cutter, but former Wrexham goalkeeper Michael Ingham was powerless to prevent the influential substitute from firing in his first of the season from fully 30 yards a minute shy of the hour mark.

The goal reinvigorated the Blues and, after Beesley was somehow unable to turn in a powerfully-driven Kevin Roberts cross, substitute Gregg Blundell went closer still.

The Minstermen were now holding on and their defence was breached for the second time in the third and final minute of injury-time as Kelly climbed above Ingham to flick in Keltie’s free kick to break his duck for the campaign.

But by then, it was too little, too late.

YORK: Ingham, Purkiss, McGurk, Parslow, Meredith, Smith (Gall 70), Lawless, Barrett, Carruthers, Rankine (Mackin 79), Brodie (Ferrell 90). Subs: Graham, Pacquette.

GOALS: Brodie 1, 32pen, 47.

CHESTER: Danby, Roberts, Kelly, Ryan, Ashton, Owen (Barry 28), Keltie, Meynell (Wilkinson 70), Beesley, Coulson, Chadwick (Blundell 65). Subs: Murphy, Rule.

GOALS: Barry 59, Kelly 90.

REFEREE: Darren Bond (Lancashire).

ATTENDANCE: 2,164 (110 away).